(His daughter has a kitten shift, I forgot and fixed it. (this character came over from a random chapter in my other book, Crow, but he stands alone in this story... but Crow is adorable and you should still read it!)
Slowing to a stop, King wiped at his brow, then stared up at the gray sky. It had rained for a short while, but then decided to stop, as per usual. It would likely start again soon, but he didn't mind either way. The rain had felt good after running nearly two miles.
He looked around for a few moments as he finished catching his breath, then noticed a good spot for a quick picture and walked over to the railing at the bottom of the bridge he was about to cross back over.
It took a minute to get the best position for the selfie, but he managed to get a great shot right as the wind rustled his short, dark hair. The light also made his soft grayish-blue eyes shine perfectly.
This one will work nicely.
He quickly opened his gaming app and uploaded the photo onto his profile. With more than two-hundred thousand subscribers, he was one of the newer rising stars of the gaming industry. His skills had his number of watchers steadily increasing daily, but his looks also brought in quite a few people, too.
Being in his prime at twenty-two, and with a strict workout regime and clean eating habits, he knew that he looked good... and used it to his advantage. He didn't care if people followed him for his gaming prowess or for his looks. As long as they were reasonable to each other while posting on his profile, and didn't go overboard, like the person who had somehow found his phone number a month ago and refused to stop calling him, he was okay with different kinds of fans.
Grinning to himself, he quickly typed up a little description, then added the photo to it before hitting the post button.
Good morning, guys. It's a cool, rainy day. Perfect for a run!
He waited a full five seconds before the replies began to come in.
MNTN: Don't catch a cold, our King!
BWLofFRT: I'LL RUN WITH YOU!
GAY4KING: I'll do other things with you!
He shook his head and turned off his phone as the message board quickly became too busy to follow.
"As crazy as always," he said with a chuckle as he tucked his phone into his back pocket before beginning his trek back across the bridge.
It wasn't even a mile in length, but the incline was a great part of his workout and took a bit of extra effort to run. He managed to get nearly all the way to the top before he felt his body really begin to ache.
Not too bad since you haven't been out in a bit.
The past week had been extremely busy. He'd finally moved out of his mother's house and gotten himself an apartment with the money he'd saved up from streaming, and as soon as he'd gotten all of his stuff set up in his bedroom, he'd had to play in a sponsored tournament!
He'd managed to do surprisingly well in it, too, and had received an email late last night about possibly increasing his streaming salary. If everything worked out well, he might not even need to get a real job!
Just the thought of being able to do what he loved as his main source of income had him grinning as he reached the top of the bridge.
"Huh...?"
Am I seeing things?
He looked at the passing cars, then out towards the water.
Everything else seems normal.
Returning his attention to the oddity, he took another step forward, then looked around the small creature that was holding onto a dark red suitcase as if its life depended on it.
That's when he noticed something stuck in the railing to his right.
A torn shirt?
Walking closer to the railing while still keeping an eye on the shivering raccoon, King untangled the shirt from the damp metal bars, but then noticed something else and slowly let the torn fabric slip from his fingers and drift down into the water far below.
A wallet?
There were also several now-wet cards scattered about, prompting him to reach between the bars in the railing and retrieve a few of them, along with the wallet.
They're all for lawyers?
And most of them had shaky X's written across them in running pen ink.
Frowning, he tucked the ruined cards into his shirt pocket, then sat down against the railing as he opened the wallet to glance inside.
Ah, here we go.
He took out the I.D. from the front clear plastic and held it up so that he could read it.
"Baron Reese King?"
Your last name is the same name I use as my nick name for gaming...
It was just so strange. The entire situation seemed like a set up.
"Is this you, bud?" he asked as he turned the front of the I.D. towards the raccoon.
It glanced at him for the briefest moment, then quickly tucked its face back against the suitcase and continued to shake.
"Is life really that scary?"
Even after he'd lost his dad in a terrible car crash that seriously damaged his left leg and arm, he hadn't felt the need to end his life. It had hurt, sure, both physically and mentally, and it still did, a lot, but he had never considered killing himself.
He felt a light drizzle begin and glanced up before frowning and looking back at the damp raccoon. It was peeking at him every now and then, but it was also flinching with every car that zoomed by.
In all honesty, he wasn't much of an animal person. He was fine with cats and dogs, but did he want one? Absolutely not. He had enough on his hands taking care of himself, especially when his old injuries acted up.
If he really is the person on the I.D., then I can't just leave him here, though.
He considered using the emergency phone a little ways away, but then pursed his lips.
He already seems really freaked out. Flashing lights and police might not be the best idea.
Of course, he knew that they wouldn't just send anyone out there, but it would cause a big scene, which meant more people... They normally tried to deescalate a situation by talking to whoever was considering taking their life, too, but how did one converse with a terrified raccoon?
It was quite a dilemma.
You know what? Let's try something first...
Pushing himself up slowly, he kept an eye on the raccoon but made sure not to stare directly at it. He was extremely careful with each movement, and whenever he saw a car coming that had loud music playing or was going excessively fast, he stopped completely and waited for it to pass so that the raccoon wouldn't become too stressed and possibly try to run into traffic... or off the bridge entirely.
He was so in-tune with everything that was going on that by the time he was able to stop within reaching distance of the suitcase's handle, his own heart was likely beating just as fast as his new little friend's.
"Alright little guy, I'm going to just help you get off this bridge, okay? We'll walk nice and slow. How does that sound?" he asked as he finally reached over and grabbed the damp handle of the bag.
The raccoon's little claws adjusted a bit on the suitcase in response, and when King gently leaned it closer to himself so that he could balance it on its wheels, his damp friend squeaked a little and took a step forward, pressing himself back against the bag.
Okay, he really wants to stay with the suitcase. This might actually work.
"There we go. One step at a time, okay?" he said as he set the slowest pace he'd ever walked.
It was soon raining again, and the droplets were actually coming down harder than before, but the little raccoon didn't seem to mind it at all. He was just thinking that it was a good thing no thunder had come with the rain, when a little rumble echoed across the sky.
As expected, the raccoon's already-wide eyes somehow stretched even wider and its little legs dragged against the sidewalk a few inches before he was able to come to a stop.
Shit.
Another rumble quickly followed the first one, making the little guy look around nervously.
It's looking for a way out. Somewhere to hide.
There was nowhere.
Hang on a second...
Licking rain droplets from his lips, King wiped his face with his arm, then slowly knelt down at the same time he tilted the suitcase until it was lying flat on the ground.
The raccoon quickly moved to the other side of the item, but that was fine.
"Let me give you somewhere to hide, okay? No one will bother you and I'll get you somewhere safe," he said as he grabbed one of the zippers and slowly began moving it around the container.
The raccoon seemed just about ready to run as it panted heavily from stress, its mouth open and drooling slightly, but when he finally managed to prop open part of the suitcase cover and his fuzzy friend realized that he could get in, that was that.
As soon as the raccoon had vanished inside the case, King yanked the zipper back around, sealing the little guy inside.
"Sorry, but I need to get you to safety first. Then I'll let you out and apologize profusely," he said as he stood back up, leaning the suitcase slowly upright in the process.
He felt the raccoon shift around inside in response, but it quickly calmed down, making him give a long sigh of relief as he finally continued his descent.
Now that he didn't have to worry about the fuzzy guy running off for the moment, King allowed his mind to wander back over what had happened.
Something happened to him that required a lawyer, but for some reason, he either couldn't find the right one for his case, or couldn't afford it.
Pulling out his wallet, King opened it again and glanced at what was inside.
Two dollars.
He closed it and tucked it back into his pocket.
It's not your business, anyways. Just get him away from the bridge and cars, then let him go.
Even though he thought that, when he finally got to the end of the bridge and crossed the street, then walked down to the park at the end of the block, he paused.
Looking down at the suitcase he still held, King pursed his lips again and sighed.
"You're all wet and your clothing probably needs washed now since you jumped in there..."
As he was considering his options his smartwatch alarm began going off, reminding him that he had promised his fans that he'd stream that evening.
Crap!
Turning, he headed down the next street quicker than he had been. He could feel the raccoon moving around in the bag a bit, but he hated being late for things, and while he wasn't close to being late right now, he still had to shower and eat before he could comfortably play in front of the camera.
Thankfully, his apartment wasn't far away, but it was up a flight of stairs.
"Almost done," he told the suitcase as an old lady walked by.
Her expression looked a little nervous, considering that her soaked neighbor was currently talking to a suitcase, but she hurried along when he sent her a what are you looking at? glare.
By the time he had gotten the suitcase up the stairs, he was ready for a nap... and a soak. His left leg was throbbing badly and his left arm wasn't far behind after having had to lift the suitcase up the stairs.
Pushing the pain to the back of his mind for the moment, King fished out his keys and opened the door with a shaky hand. He locked it the moment he got himself and the suitcase inside, then leaned back to sag against it.
"...what in the world did I just do?"
A quiet squeak from the suitcase answered him, but he did not speak raccoon.
"Alright, I need a shower," he said as he laid the suitcase down and carefully undid the zipper.
He didn't dare open it, because he had no doubt that his new friend wasn't happy right now, but it was completely unzipped, so he knew that he'd figure out how to push it open on his own eventually.
"Okay, one thing at a time."
He straightened back up and headed into the bathroom to get the shower going, then walked back into the kitchen and filled a bowl with water before setting it close to the suitcase.
Okay, that's that for now.
With his friend taken care of for the moment, King went about what he needed to do. He showered, blow-dried his hair, and got dressed in record time. He was actually a tiny bit worried that Baron would shift and find him in a compromising position, but when he stepped back into the living room area and walked towards the kitchen, he saw that he hadn't had anything to worry about.
"I see a little black nose..." he teased with an inquisitive grin.
Said black nose quickly vanished back into the suitcase with a quiet squeak, making him raise an eyebrow as he took a step closer, then squatted down about five feet away.
"Are you feeling a little better, Baron?" he asked before waiting patiently for a response of some sort.
He wasn't really sure exactly what kind of reaction he was going to get, but when that little black nose nudged the lid of the suitcase up the slightest bit again, then wiggled a little, he couldn't help but chuckle quietly.
Soon there was a little paw reaching out, but when it just continued to reach, but not grab anything, King tilted his head, confused.
You looking for something to hold onto?
He had a few extra blankets, but he wasn't really sure if those would work all that well since there was already clothing inside the suitcase that his new friend evidently didn't want.
Hmm, maybe...
Getting up, he walked into his bedroom and grabbed the stuffed animal his mother had gifted him when he was eight. It was the only one he had and he took very good care of it.
When he stepped back into the living room his new friend actually had his head out of the suitcase. Of course, it quickly ducked back inside when it saw him, but he didn't mind.
"I think I got you something you'll like," he said as he walked over and quickly set the stuffed otter in front of the suitcase.
He backed up right afterward, and after a quick glance at his watch, quickly dismissed himself to get ready to stream.
The next three hours were a blur of video games and selling himself in front of the camera. Even with his left arm hurting, he still managed to get some really good scores. His fans were quite active during his matches, too, and, unfortunately, they noticed how often he would glance towards his bedroom door every time he finished a match.
Several of them asked him about it in the comments section, but when he ignored those questions for less intrusive ones, people began to make all sorts of guesses as to what he was expecting to come in.
Let's just say that raccoon was not amongst their guesses, but he evidently had at least three different mistresses, still lived with his mom, and was also evidently worried the police might break down his door for one reason or another.
By the time he finally shut down his computer, he was ready for bed.
Uh, I forgot to eat.
Pushing his chair back, he stood up and stretched, yawned, then headed for the kitchen. His feet paused abruptly in the hallway entryway, however, when he noticed his new friend.
It's outside the suitcase...
It was also holding onto the little stuffed otter with one arm as it dipped its little paw into the bowl of water he'd made for it. That paw then found its way up to its mouth for a bit of licking, then was calmly dipped right back into the water. When it came up a second time, it actually went towards his stuffed otter's mouth.
Taking a few steps backwards until he was out of view, King quietly cleared his throat, announcing himself with the sound before walking back around the corner.
The raccoon had reacted, as expected, but instead of slipping back into the suitcase, it situated itself on top of it. With his little otter still in his arms, of course.
It honestly doesn't even look that small when you're holding it.
It was only a few inches smaller than the raccoon, itself.
"Would you like something to eat?" he asked it, though he figured that there would be no reply.
When the little guy just stared at him, he quietly walked around it and into the kitchen. He didn't really have much since he needed to go shopping, but he did pull out a few pieces of bread and make himself a sandwich... then doubled it so that his new friend could have one if he'd like.
He quickly ate his own where he stood, but once done, he grabbed the plate with the other sandwich on it and gently set it on the floor a few feet away from the raccoon.
"That's all I have for now, but I'll definitely go shopping tomorrow," he said before calmly distancing himself from the animal.
He got all the way to the hall before realizing that he'd forgotten to mention something.
"The bathroom is right here. I'll leave the door open, so um, if you could use it, I'd greatly appreciate it."
Of course, he got no indication that his friend understood him, but he couldn't blame it. Its attention was constantly going back and forth between him and the sandwich. Clearly, it had more important priorities at that moment.
"I'll leave you to your dinner. Have a good night, Baron."
He was just turning to leave when he thought of one more thing.
"If you need me, I'll leave my door open, too."